^WORDING: Now, I am going to read several propositions that would prohibit
and make illegal certain activities. First, would you vote -- for or against a law
which would make it illegal to manufacture, sell, or possess semi-automatic guns
known as assault rifles?

See http://www.chelancountygop.org/PollingOrganizations.htm for links to polling orgs.

You might also note that the value of such polls is questionable. None of them precedes the question about the law by asking what the respondent understands an 'assault weapon' (or in Gallup, and 'assault rifle') actually is. How can one measure support for a measure without finding out if a potential supporter/opponent knows what the measure means?

mblat

04-03-2009, 11:10 PM

Gallup (http://www.gallup.com/poll/1645/Guns.aspx) says
Are you for or against a law which would make
it illegal to manufacture, sell, or possess semi-automatic
guns known as assault rifles?

^WORDING: Now, I am going to read several propositions that would prohibit
and make illegal certain activities. First, would you vote -- for or against a law
which would make it illegal to manufacture, sell, or possess semi-automatic guns
known as assault rifles?

See http://www.chelancountygop.org/PollingOrganizations.htm for links to polling orgs.

You might also note that the value of such polls is questionable. None of them precedes the question about the law by asking what the respondent understands an 'assault weapon' (or in Gallup, and 'assault rifle') actually is. How can one measure support for a measure without finding out if a potential supporter/opponent knows what the measure means?

I think you overestimating need to explain WHAT measure means. A Measure have to framed in certain terms..... like "AR-15 is and assault weapon similar to weapons used in military and shouldn't be on our streets"
While this is total bull.... that is all that is needed.

Librarian

04-03-2009, 11:27 PM

I think you overestimating need to explain WHAT measure means. A Measure have to framed in certain terms..... like "AR-15 is and assault weapon similar to weapons used in military and shouldn't be on our streets"
While this is total bull.... that is all that is needed.

Well, it doesn't tell ME anything interesting unless the respondents can recite from memory "semi-automatic rifle using removable magazines and having certain mostly cosmetic characteristics such as a pistol grip, as distinct from a machine gun". THEN their opinion on whether they support or oppose a law is at least based on something that has a physical existence, not some nightmare fed to them by the technologically incompetent or the emotionally damaged (including substantially every legislator in the country).

KWA-S

04-04-2009, 7:28 AM

Well, it doesn't tell ME anything interesting unless the respondents can recite from memory "semi-automatic rifle using removable magazines and having certain mostly cosmetic characteristics such as a pistol grip, as distinct from a machine gun". THEN their opinion on whether they support or oppose a law is at least based on something that has a physical existence, not some nightmare fed to them by the technologically incompetent or the emotionally damaged (including substantially every legislator in the country).

You're right...its a pity that a while ago, some scumbags abused literacy tests, because if we had legitimate ones now, the political landscape, especially 2A, would be drastically different.

mblat

04-04-2009, 10:12 AM

Well, it doesn't tell ME anything interesting unless the respondents can recite from memory "semi-automatic rifle using removable magazines and having certain mostly cosmetic characteristics such as a pistol grip, as distinct from a machine gun". THEN their opinion on whether they support or oppose a law is at least based on something that has a physical existence, not some nightmare fed to them by the technologically incompetent or the emotionally damaged (including substantially every legislator in the country).

Just because you are capable and wiling to educate yourself on variety of subjects it doesn't mean that majority of population also capable.
Average Joe forms his opinion not even on news..... which would be half bad.... he bases his opinion based on latest installment of "Boston Legal" and such.....

See.... I am not advocating that their opinions are correct... but they still real.

Scotty

04-04-2009, 10:47 AM

If you take a class on statistics and polls, you will realize they are not accurate. You can always fudge the data to produce the result you need.